Norse

The day was moving sluggishly till I got a package in the mail. I had ordered a book from Barnes & Noble and it finally arrived two months later. It's called "The Norse Myths retold by Kevin Crossley - Holland" I've always been keenly interested in mythology. Somehow I feel there are many insights about life in these old stories. They set values to live by in one myth and then break some values in another. They seem like flights of fancy and yet they are so close to who we are. Most of all I love the fact that they hold within them ancient wisdom, colourful characters and amazing magic. Our own Indian mythology is so amazingly rich and I haven't even touched the surface. I did buy the Mahabharat but never finished reading it. Ofcourse having read it in school I do remember the major characters and events but it is a vast story and one day I will read the whole of it I promised myself when I bought it. When my father in law came to stay with us he took it with him. May be I will buy it again.

Anyway coming back to these Norse myths. I got interested in them after seeing the movie Thor. I know! I know! it's not a great film but it's a window into a world filled with magic and romance. I've been told by two people on separate occasions that I live in "Lala land" and at the time I was deeply offended because I consider myself to be quite realistic about life. On the other hand when I think of the worlds that interest me infinitely more than the real one I can think of Odysseus journey and Frodo Baggins' journey and the journey of my dreams every night. These are journeys that came from the minds of  people who loved their Lalaland. People who understood and revered the power of the imagination. Imagination that knows no boundries and where everything is possible. It's what makes the wolves howl at the moon. May be I'm getting carried away. The thing is I love my Lalaland. I make a journey everyday in my dreams which is a journey that I've come to love. It is a journey that gives me clues about how to deal with life when I wake up and I realise that so many things in life still don't make any sense.

The thing is it is beyond us mere mortals to understand the designs of life. All we can do is give our imagination the space to grow and thrive. How does all this relate to Norse myths? I don't know. Imagination I guess. My Lalaland. I love the description of the nine worlds, the world of giants, the Gods, the humans, the dwarfs. The old stories, of Loki's treacheries and of the revered Odin and the strong but rather simple Thor. I love them. This might be the book that's going to get me back to reading!